Salp biology (Salpa thompsoni) at the Chatham Rise, New Zealand

The abundant pelagic tunicate Salpa thompsoni is a major grazer in the Southern Ocean. We report the length-frequency distribution, maturity stage composition, growth, and size-specific diel vertical abundance patterns at one of the northernmost habitats of S. thompsoni (Chatham Rise, east of New Ze...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Lüskow, Florian, Pakhomov, Evgeny A, Stukel, Michael R, Décima, Moira
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: PANGAEA - Data Publisher for Earth & Environmental Science 2021
Subjects:
gelatinous zooplankton
Pelagic tunicate
Size-specificity
Southern Ocean
Southwest Pacific
Salp Particle expOrt and Ocean Production SalpPOOP
Pacific
New Zealand
Online Access:https://dx.doi.org/10.1594/pangaea.930609
https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.930609
Description
Summary:The abundant pelagic tunicate Salpa thompsoni is a major grazer in the Southern Ocean. We report the length-frequency distribution, maturity stage composition, growth, and size-specific diel vertical abundance patterns at one of the northernmost habitats of S. thompsoni (Chatham Rise, east of New Zealand, ~ 44°S 178°E). By observing the in situ growth of distinct size cohorts using integrative krill net tows (upper 200 m, 2 mm mesh size, 3.2 m² mouth opening) and ex situ on-board experiments, relative growth was estimated for small blastozooids to be between 8.8–11.7% d−1 at ambient temperatures of 11 °C. Integrative Bongo tows in the upper 200 m (202 µm mesh size, 0.4 m² mouth opening) showed that S. thompsoni not only have daytime-dependent vertical abundance patterns, but also that these are size-specific, with medium-sized blastozooids and large oozooids contributing most to the elevated values during the night.

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